Taking the Road Less Traveled

Tag Archives: cooking

For those of you who know me – you know I LOVE bacon. I’ve been in this relationship since I was a child. It wasn’t one I had to constantly work on. No, no, no… It seems to always just be there. In my drawer, at the store, on a plate on my desk….So it just made sense one day, bacon would be the perfect 5th food group – in lasagna! And hence it was born… My special Vegetarian Bacon Lasagna.

I hope I’m not posting this too late for those of you trying to decide what to cook for Super Bowl Sunday. As I sit at my desk it’s early morning on that exact day. I’m sure men and women had sleepless nights, tossing and turning, and dreaming the color of the team they are hoping to win. But as you check your email, Facebook, Linked In pages – wrapped under your covers, I hope this will give you the perfect recipe. Imagine sitting in front of the TV with a huge plate of steaming Bacon Lasagna, ice cold beer in your hand, watching your favorite team play. This recipe is packed with fresh vegetables, multiple cheeses and a few surprises, capers being one.

My Vegetarian Bacon Lasagna Recipe

Lasagna noodles – 1 box – I like the kind you don’t have to boil but if you like to boil then go for it

Ricotta cheese – larger sized container

2 eggs

Parmesan cheese

Mozzarella cheese

Sour cream

Jar of capers

Vegetables: Whatever you like but here are some ideas: These are ones you’ll want to sauté first: Eggplant, mushrooms, zucchini, onion, garlic. I also love spinach but don’t cook it first. You’re just going to layer it raw.

Pasta sauce: Either make it yourself or get a jar. I like Newman’s tomato basil

I slice the eggplant into thin discs and sauté them with a little chicken broth

Cook the bacon (I guess you could cook it first and then use the oil to sauté the veggies but that just doesn’t seem quite right)

Prepare the Ricotta cheese by adding 2 eggs and mixing it up

Once everything is ready, you just layer. I put the pasta sauce on first, then the noodles, then the ricotta cheese, veggies, bacon, other cheeses, a few capers, spinach, a dollop of sour cream.

If you use the no boil noodles you need to make sure they are by something moist (pasta sauce or ricotta cheese)

The last layer should have pasta sauce and cheese on top.

Save out a few pieces of bacon to put on top

Cook!

Cover with a sheet of non-stick foil and place the dish on a cookie sheet. I do that so that if it bubbles over, your oven still stays clean

Bake at 375 degrees for around 30-45 minutes. It’s hard to say because it depends on how large your baking dish is. It should be bubbling. I also take the foil off when it’s ready and let it cook just a bit longer to brown the top.

Let it sit for about 10 minutes to let everything absorb together

Put your bacon garnish on

Voila! You’re done!

Serve with a fabulous red wine or super cold beer!!! And of course, GO NINERS!!!

I keep buying fish to grill at night and then end up not cooking it because I’m just too, well I hate to say lazy, but sometimes it just feels like a lot of work at the end of the day. Yesterday I went to Whole Foods and scanned the fresh fish section. I never thought about buying a “whole” fish, but it’s the way to go if you want fresh.

The first time I did this I took the whole fish home and it was a bit challenging to weed through everything to the meat. The next time I asked the guys at Whole Foods if they would butterfly it and remove the head and tail and they did. It opened a new world to me. Hopefully this will inspire you to try this too! I grill it with olive oil, fresh ground pepper, coarse salt, lemon juice and herbs from my garden.

Put it on the grill and you’re done! I added shiitake mushrooms on the side with butter and seasonings if you’re wondering what those are 😉 I had this for breakfast and will have it cold on a salad later. Let me know if you try it and especially if you have it for breakfast. Serve it with a poached egg and bacon. PS this was trout but there are many others to try.

This weekend try something new for breakfast. Instead of frying up a few eggs in an ordinary, pan get adventurous. I’ll tell you how to make this scrumptious treat below. And I’ll add the disclaimer – it’s SUPER EASY. Here what you need. Use as much of the following as you’d like:

Uncooked bacon

Eggs

Asparagus

Mushrooms

Cherry tomatoes

Cut jalapenos with the seeds removed

Olive oil

Coarse salt

Fresh ground pepper

Non-stick foil for easy clean up

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place the strips of bacon on a foil lined sheet pan and place in oven. Mine were thick, large pieces so they took a little longer to cook, about 12 minutes. But keep a real close eye those strips. They go from uncooked to cooked pretty fast. Once the bacon is the way you like it, remove it from the oven. Drain the grease from the pan (leave a coating for flavor). Add the veggies onto the same pan and toss them around to coat them with the oil. If you removed most of the oil you’ll need to add a little olive oil. Lightly salt and pepper and put the veggies in the oven. Keep a close eye on them. I cooked mine for about 5 minutes but essentially you want them not quite cooked. When they are still a bit crispy remove the pan and crack the eggs over the vegetables and then they go back in the oven.

Here are the eggs about 3 minutes in

I cooked the eggs for about 4-5 minutes. It depends how you like them. I like the whites cooked and the yolks runny. When the eggs are done remove the pan from the oven and add the bacon to the whole lot of it. Plate and serve!

Plated pre my first bite

Yum!!!

I have to say, baked eggs have a very different, luscious texture vs when you cook them in an “ordinary” pan. And the bacon for some odd reason is not greasy. I hope you’ll try it and if you do let me know what you think!

It’s one week before Thanksgiving and thousands of free range turkeys are blissfully running around barnyards. Donning buffed out legs and chests, they are well oiled, gluten-free machines. High on endorphins, life couldn’t get any better. Even “fresh” sounds good until, well…”their” holiday rolls around.

In fact, many of them must think they’re safe. I mean seriously, every store is decked out for Christmas and Thanksgiving seems to be forgotten. I truly believe these fair feathered friends are jogging side by side, planning their New Year’s celebration when they will toast with “grain” alcohol cocktails and drumsticks (ice cream, not…). With all that said, I’m sure one or two will be able to outrun the Whole Foods and Trader Joes trucks, spinning their legs like egg beaters to help get them over to the bushes. As for the others? Well, Thanksgiving, here you come.

So you’ve ordered your turkey either fresh, frozen, brined or Butterballed. Either way, you’ve got a week to figure out how to set this Thanksgiving apart from the rest. And that’s where I come in (along with my bacon obsession). Today I am going to help you wow and amaze your friends and family – while keeping them healthy at the same time. It’s all about “Baconurkey”, and yes, this will change your world.

Last year I shared my bacon-wrapped turkey recipe along with a few factoids. First, did you know that in a “lighthearted” survey 23% of men ranked bacon as their favorite fragrance? They didn’t qualify this but I’m fairly certain it’s cooked vs. raw so thought it was important to add that disclaimer. That factoid makes total sense. But in my heart I knew there MUST be something healthy about bacon. I’m sure you’re thinking, how could adding bacon ever be healthy??? Well I’m glad you inquired because I believe it’s my responsibility to find a way to help relieve any guilt you might have, every time you reach for that perfect strip.

After weeks of research I was finally able to find one healthy fact about bacon. And you know, just as in bad dates, it only takes one 😉 Here’s the one healthy fact I could find about bacon – “Pregnant women should eat bacon because it contains choline which helps fetal brain development.” What’s confusing is that if it helps fetal brains, why can’t it help ours? I’m sure it’s quite intuitive to take a flying leap, allowing us to assume you’re smarter, if you eat more bacon. (If that’s the case, I swear I must be a genius) So get ready to host a table full of brilliant people. To test them, see if they know what this means before and after dinner: Minutus cantorum, minutus balorum, minutus carborata descendum pantorum. (translation below)

So how to start…Today, I want to take you into my kitchen where people become smarter. Yes, I am here to introduce you to Baconurkey (“bacon wrapped turkey” – if you were unsure what that word meant, please have 2-3 helpings) I will add a disclaimer – By no means am I licensed to provide cooking instructions, but I’m willing to “chance” it.

So this idea came to me 2 years ago. The thing about turkey is that we really only cook them once a year. Because of this, every November we find ourselves hovered over our computer keyboard typing out the words “how to cook a turkey”. Last time I looked, this search brought over 580 million results! Well, no more. This blog is going to solve any anxiety you may have about next week’s Thanksgiving dinner and make you a superhero at the same time. Out with the plain old browned up turkey. It’s time to put a little sass on your table! I’ll keep this simple and use photos to describe how you can make a bird like this.

Carefully lay the bacon on top of the bird – note, you can use 2 pounds if you want to completely suffocate it (legs, wings, oven, et al)

Dump a few cans of chicken broth over everything

Add and drink 1-2 cups of white wine

Cover with a large piece of foil

Follow standard cooking instructions

Once your sassy bird hits the correct temp ( ~180⁰, take or give a few), pull the foil off and let that bacon brown up

When the bacon is golden brown – get-ur out of the oven

Let your beautiful, amazing bird stand for 30 minutes

During this time you’ll need to protect the bacon. I’ve lost a few strips during the waiting period.

Secret tip: Remove the bacon (and hide it), pop the turkey back in to brown the skin. Then place the bacon back on top for your family photo.

A quick note on the gravy – drain off the fat and make it like you usually do. The bacon will give it a divine flavor.

Baconurkey!

Good luck and let me know if you’re going to try it! And if you do, and you love it please post a comment. If it doesn’t work out for you, I’ll just remind you of something my Momma used to say… “If you don’t have something nice to say…don’t say anything at all.” Happy early Thanksgiving everyone! PS: Mark your calendars! Bacon Day is less than a year away – August 31, 2014 (the Saturday before Labor Day)! That’s right, even bacon has its own day.

Me – pre-bacon wrapped turkey …. No more boring – Today, I’m living the life of bacon! Are you?????

If you’d like to purchase a print to remind you of this beautiful bird, cooked or not cooked, please click on “Contact”. My photography is printed on aluminum. Utilizing an advanced process which infuses dyes directly into the metal, the colors / saturation of the bacon and bird are really amazing. In addition, your print will be displayed using mount blocks which float the image ½ inch off the wall.

First, I don’t crave sweets. I am a salt loving girl through and through. But I do find it hard to pass by Sprinkles and not pop in and buy a red velvet cupcake. I was going through some of my photos and found this one. (I wish I had just taken it just a second ago and that big glob of icing was in front of me) Anyway, I got to thinking – is red velvet colored vanilla or chocolate so I did a little research. Red velvet is actually a light cocoa cake with either food coloring or beetroot added. I don’t remember red velvet cake growing up and found that there was a resurgence in the popularity of this cake because of the film Steel Magnolias (1989). During the wedding scene, the groom’s cake is a red velvet, made in the shape of an armadillo. (Red velvet wedding cake is a southern tradition) So if you were wondering if I exercised “portion control” (where you just eat half of everything)…not this time: 😉

I wanted to thank an incredible blogger – http://laurasconfessions.com/ for nominating me for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. When I started blogging I had no idea how much I would learn, and the incredibly talented people/writers/photographers I would discover. It has truly changed my life. I feel very honored Laura, and…the feeling is mutual!

As a blogger, I find I’m sitting with my squinchy, binding my hair up over my head as I hover over my keyboard (that’s my friend Carla’s vision – not all of us do this but apparently I do :)) I’m guessing a lot of bloggers think about this, but it does feel fun when you write your blog. However, after you tweak, modify, view, preview and then finally hit “publish”, you think (at least I do) is anyone out there???” Mom? Dad? Carla? Here’s what I’ve actually found – there are a lot of people out there. An incredible amount of creativity, inspiration and support. So what I like about this award is that I actually have the opportunity to highlight and nominate other blogs who inspire me.

So here are two things they’d like me to do if I’m nominated. Tell you a little bit about me (as if you need to know more) and tell you about a few of the bloggers that I love, and would nominate for this award.

A little bit about me –

I believe that bacon is the 5th food group

Champagne is the 6th

“Not” jumping out of an airplane and/or hang gliding are on my bucket list

I use extra Downey in my wash so my clothes smell like it

I add too much cream in my coffee and although I’ve tried to change that I just don’t seem to have the will-power

I LOVE Canadian Hiking Photography and Patrick Latter’s work but I can only access it through WordPress. Here is the link to his site in case it works for you: www.hikingphoto.com (His work is amazing and he was the first person to follow me 😉

There are so many more incredible blogs, these are only a few! Thank you again Laura for this special nomination. xoxox

My sister is one of the best cooks I know. She is super creative in the kitchen so each meal is a unique experience. I woke up this morning to the smell of sautéed onions and jalapeños (we are from New Mexico so in our family you think you’re in heaven as…